Further to the news on Saturday when Hunt Saboteurs from across the country gathered in Yorkshire to stop three grouse shoots on the Inglorious 12th (here), they’ve been back out again.
In atrocious weather conditions they went back to Nidderdale yesterday and disrupted one of the same shoots they’d visited on Saturday.
Further details available on the Hunt Sabs website here.
Raptor Persecution UK 
Bravo!
To all the Hunt Sabs in Yorkshire, I doff my cap.
Arrest, imprison, throw away the key. Sue for for loss of amenity, travel, accommodation, shooting fees. This is why should happen when you invade private property, disrupt a business, menace people and cost them time and money. Keep in mind that what these terrorists are doing is setting about ordinary people going about their perfectly legal business.
How about if I, as an active member of the Band of Hope, enter the houses of the saboteurs and pour their alcohol down the sink?
If you want to stop this, you do it democratically, not by acting like members of a Venezuelan death squad.
Antoine,
Your hyperbole makes you sound like you’re interviewing for a job at the Countryside Alliance. Usually I wouldn’t accept a comment like this but I think on this occasion it’s useful for moderate blog readers to see/understand the vitriol aimed at the hunt sabs, who, as far as I can see, were peacefully, and lawfully, protesting, not ‘setting about’ anybody, not ‘menacing’ anybody, and not behaving like ‘terrorists’. Your reference to them acting like ‘members of a Venezuelan death squad’ is, frankly, ridiculous.
Thank you. I really do not condone these “hunt saboteur” actions. They are breaking the law and do not have the guts to show their faces. How can any law-abiding person think it is OK? If they turned up in my front garden I would be terrified, so terrorists they are. A bit of hyperbole, well, why not?
These people expect to get off Scot-free, as did the death squads.
You will have read my analysis of the actual value of raptors, and my unequivocal condemnation of shooting grouse and pheasants for sport. I am also of the opinion (subsequent to a little research a few years ago) that the Board members of organisations such as xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx.
And then we have the Moorland Association.
You are up against the big boys. Booking a day’s shooting requires progress through various website levels, and the locations of the shoots are not easily discovered. Unsurprisingly. Shooting is big business. The democratic process needs to be followed. You will not get much change out of Tory MPs, but maybe one might get support from Labour?
“They are breaking the law”…
So were the suffragettes…
The Anti-Apartheid resistance…
The Tolpuddle Martyrs…
The victims of the Peterloo Massacre…
The members of Operation Valkyrie…
Chinese Pro-Democracy campaigners…
Rosa Parks…
Martin Luther King…
Mohandas Gandhi…
Women who dare to uncover their heads in Iran…
Alexei Navalny…
And many thousands more, who’ve taken a stand against evil. And, in some cases, gave their lives to win the very rights and freedoms that people like you take for granted.
While you’re composing your authoritarian claptrap, you might consider that the vast majority of those who attend Driven Grouse Shoots are participating in an activity which is wholly reliant upon criminality. So much for the law of the land!
“…wholly reliant upon criminality”. I suppose that you are referring to the illegal killing of raptors?
Why not say so? I don’t think that game shooting will stop unless the “criminality” is stopped. And yet, do raptors really take so many birds as to lower the population of game birds to unviable levels. Facts are useful, not unsupported blether from either side of the divide, wouldn’t you say?
I’ve presented my factual, numerical analysis of the enormous value of sea eagles. No one cares. hat have you done?
It might be worth reading the “Langholm Report”, wouldn’t you say?
Your “factual, numerical analysis of the enormous value of sea eagles” has precisely bugger all to do with this particular thread.
https://markavery.info/2014/07/26/driven-grouse-shooting-rely-criminal-activity/
Ss we all know, a quick search for “the monetary value of white-tailed eagles uk” reveals that Mr Bisset’s “factual, numerical analysis of the enormous value of sea eagles” has been done before.
Maybe that’s why he’s got his arse in his hands.
I used the Mull study as well as information from the Borders Eagle project and others. What I was underlining was the contrast between the value of the bird and the trivial punishment if convicted of killing one. I am sorry If I made it too difficult for you to understand.
This is just all about you, isn’t it?
But none of them hid their identities with balaclavas. It is this that gets my goat. And those listed suffered far worse in the hands of their oppressors. Have the “bottle” to be named and known as a campaigner. As someone who protested against many things I didn’t condone – Vietnam being one, I find sabs despicable.
“Have the bottle to be named…”
Says ‘Austringer’!
There are many reasons why some people want, and indeed need, to protect their identity, especially given the violence associated with those who fox hunt and/or their supporters.
Fair point Dr Tingay. Although both you and Dr Avery will know who I am through my email address. As I no longer hold office in any hunting body of any discipline, perhaps I no longer need to remain hidden; I did this for exactly the reasons you outlined about the other side of the coin. The threats and attacks to either side are real and unacceptable. With your permission I will now declare myself.
So let’s get this straight; you used a pseudonym online, because you claim the ‘threats’ and ‘attacks’ are real, yet you count people who are literally in the line of fire as ‘despicable’ for doing exactly the same in real life. Do you not see how utterly ridiculous and inconsistent your arguments are? You only find sabs ‘despicable’ because they interfere with your little hobby, let’s have it right.
Got any evidence of Sabs attacking hunters and their supporters?
While the rest of us find them admirable!
I cited the above, in response to the complaints of illegality from Mr Bisset, as examples of those who also broke the law, and to make the point that they, under his criteria, were simply common criminals rather than iconic figures in the fight against evil.
“But none of them hid their identities with balaclavas”…
you conveniently ignore the fact that the majority of those listed were active before the development of the internet, when anonymity was much easier to maintain. Or, do you think that Claus von Stauffenberg and his associates marched up and down the street carrying banners advertising their cause?
Finally, the individuals listed stood as figureheads of their movements, so hiding their identities would not have been possible, or conducive to their aims.
Save hide their identity, not because they are ‘terrorists’ who are hiding from the law, they hide their identity to protect themselves from reprisals from thugs who are only too happy to break the law.
Sabs even! 🙄
From what I understand, it is legal to protest in the UK, and the right to protest in England and Wales is protected under the European Convention of Human Rights.
Just because you disagree with the actions of the Hunt Saboteurs, doesn’t necessarily make their actions unlawful.
In your posts you repeatedly accuse the Hunt Saboteurs of acting unlawfully.
Please could you explain which laws you believe the Hunt Sabs have actually broken.
Whilst I suspect many of those who have had their days shooting disrupted are probably disappointed and angry that their lawful activity has been disrupted. There is indisputable evidence of the links between criminal activity and game bird shooting. The plight of the Hen Harrier is an absolute testament to this.
The game shooting industry could and should have ended this criminal activity.
It hasn’t, and it is therefore not surprising that it finds itself on the receiving end of protests.
I note there has been no reply from Antoine as to which laws he accused the Hunt Sabs as having allegedly broken??
Is this because the accusations were baseless, and based on prejudice and bias against the saboteurs?
They wear masks Antoine because of the history of abuse and real damage to property (tyre slashing has been popular) they’ve had to put up with when their identities have become known. Spend a bit of time googling for videos of both hunt sabs being violent to hunt followers and hunt followers being violent to hunt sabs and indeed hunt monitors. You’ll find one of these categories very slim pickings indeed, and much of what’s in it might look a little staged or in full context would have been hunt sabs defending themselves. The other though will be prodigious in terms of quantity and ‘quality’ of the violence – it’s pretty extreme against unarmed protestors who threaten a day’s ‘sport’ not life or limb. In fact there’ve been occasions when hunt sabs, many of whom work in healthcare, have given first aid to hunt members who’ve been injured in what can be a very unsafe activity especially for children, indeed there have been child fatalities on hunts.
perhaps they don’t want to show their faces as the don’t want to end up in a “stink pit”
The Hunt Saboteurs Association has been in existence since 1963 (our 60th birthday year). We are the worlds longest surviving direct action organisation, a grand British tradition. Originally hunt sabs did not wear masks, but over the years, the level of violence from hunters has increased and spread to attacks on people’s houses, pets and property (see attacks on Chris Packham), so the use of masks has become widespread. Two hunt saboteurs have been killed by hunters, and rare is the long-term hunt sab who has not received an injury. As for trespassing, this is civil not a criminal matter and of course, hunters trespass all the time.
Absolutely. My thanks for all you do for our wildlife, and the cause of common decency.
👏👏👏👏
Thanks for this. I was fishing on the river Ure in Ripon way back in 1989 when a mink hunt came along closely followed by some hunt sabs. The sabs weren’t wearing masks and not one of them gave me any hassle because I was fishing although I think a few disapproved. I wasn’t threatened or verbally insulted at all. However, the actual hunt had treed a mink a few yards down from where I was sitting and shot it, then forgot the rifle leaving it unattended for quite some time on the riverbank. I only discovered this when later on they treed another mink and the shooter realised he’d forgot his rifle and came haring back down the path to get it. Later when both the hunt and sabs came back one of the hunt leaders saw my rod and said ‘they’ll be after your lot next’. It was at that point I think I started losing interest in angling, I didn’t want to be in the same category as those clowns. Many, many thanks for what the HSA has done and is doing.
👏👏👏
Am I able to mention on here that Protect The Wild emailed me with a link to a Home Office survey, which is https://www.homeofficesurveys.homeoffice.gov.uk/s/firearms-licensing/ Protect The Wild explain that the H.O. seeks views on recommendations for changes to legislation on firearms licensing, possible changes to the system of referees, and changes in other areas of firearm licensing. Protect The Wild also say that pro-shooting lobbyists are asking their members to answer this consultation. It occurs to me that your supporters may like to complete the survey which incidentally closes on the 23rd August. You may all have already done so of course.
Pathetic.
Once again, bravo to all who disrupt the recreational abuse of our wildlife.
“Arrest, imprison, throw away the key”
The facist response to protest.
Oh dear! In arguing so very unreasonably for the grouse shooters, you have made an excellent case for the saboteurs – thank you!
Thank you Antoine, for showing us what you really are; a grouse moor landowner’s sycophant. What an appallingly bigoted attitude.
Bless the sabs, love them.
The fact that you tried to present yourself as some ‘moderate’ in subsequent posts after this, in spite of how clearly fascistic you are, is equal parts hilarious and pathetic. Who do you think you are kidding here? You have absolutely no clue about peaceful protesting or this country’s long history of civil disobedience. You don’t give a stuff about raptors, you just want to appear morally superior (you failed).
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
where does this come into it “acting like members of a Venezuelan death squad.”, there’s only one “death squad” and it’s not the Hunt Sabs!, they are trying to stop death!
…but you can act like a venezuelan death squad, can you?…
The hunt sabs are doing a vital service in protecting our wild places from these vandals with guns and money. If I wasn’t disabled and seventy five years old I’d be joining them.
Well done sabs
Tremendous work, more power to them!
Please Antoine, please understand the reasons behind the sabateurs protests. Surely you can see that there is a genuine case against driven grouse shooting. Please take some time to see the vile cases of raptor destruction at the hands of grouse shooting employees and come back with a reasoned argument for the continuation of a ‘sport’ you obviously admire. Your diatribe is frankly embarassing.
You appear to have completely misunderstood what I have posted. I have repeatedly posted here and elsewhere that grouse/pheasant shooting is distasteful, at the least. I have repeatedly posted that the sanctions for killing raptors are trivial, and that the responsible parties are treated very lightly. The employees face prosecution. I have not come across a case where the landowner, the employer, faced heavy fines and prison. I have been following cases of raptor killing for longer than this site has existed. I understand the reasons for the saboteurs actions. I think that they are wrong. The comments above include some rather nasty personal attacks on myself. Name-calling is not an argument. The saboteurs are breaking the law. Oh, and suffragettes did not hide their faces.
You will note that part of an earlier comment is blanked. It was a reference to xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx. But, hey, I am an easy target.
From one who refers to people who stand up for our wildlife as “terrorists” on the 25th anniversary of the Omagh Bombing. Tasteless as well as arrogant.
I think part of the problem was your massive mis-representation of the hunt saboteurs. You only need to read on social media (I use twitter) on the multitude of the various different hunt sabs groups to learn of their tactics though I appreciate that one might see those as biased reports. Unfortunately you also read of how much violence is carried out towards hunt sabs by the hunt staff/supporters as I commented on on the last post about hunt sabs on this site, it’s sickening. Though I’m sure yes the hunting/shooting fraternity will see them as a ‘menace’ (maybe in a different context to the way that you were referring to) ‘setting about ordinary people’ NO. A wide range of their tactics is simply (or not so simply) to, at often great danger towards themselves physically come between the animal murderers and the animal in order to prevent an animal being killed. In the 1980’s and maybe the 70’s sabs were taught to merely sit down in the face of any violence towards them. ‘Terrorists’ they certainly are not. Does the fact that they wear face coverings add to the reason that you called them terrorists? Again as I stated on the previous post about saboteurs the reason that they cover their faces is to avoid being identified out of fear of hunt staff/supporters turning up at their houses. There has been countless incidents of hunt staff or usually hunt supporters turning up at their private homes wielding weapons, their cars being burnt out, their tyres slashed and dead animals being strewn around the property. As far as ‘terrorists’ go the nearest you could get to that is the fact that at least 2 hunt saboteurs have actually been killed by hunt members using their vehicles and they weren’t even convicted which is beyond belief. You will find that the violence is always instigated and carried out by hunt members towards sabs there are countless countless incidents though the hunt are never prosecuted, its sickening with sabs often ending up in hospital. You will also find that the shoots don’t always pack in, sometimes they shoot over the sabs. In my opinion the hunts and shoots deserve nothing less they are animal murderers and maimers I would love to join the sabs but there aren’t any near me for miles and miles around.
You make some good points. However, anyone totally dressed in black with a face mask who presents themselves to me will fill me with terror. Entering private property without permission is rude at the least. If there is intent to cause harm, discomfort or disruption it is illegal.
You will have noted that there are very nasty personal comments being made against me. Not conducive to sensible debate. This would, I suggest, work against your statement that the violence is all one-sided.
There seems to be a general consensus that I am pro-hunt, pro-shooting. I am not, nor can anyone find anything that would suggest that, because it does not exist.
I am in favour of law and order and respect for private property. How strange that I feel obliged to defend myself from people who seem to want the same thing that I do, but think that law-breaking is the way to get it.
If people commit crime they should be prosecuted, “be you ever so high the law is above you”.
All of this stuff has been going on for a while ie since fox hunting was campaigned against.
Ultimately, Parliament can make changes. The only route in a civilised country.
Why the excitement about covered faces on grouse moors? Many people who potter about on grouse moors will attest to how commonplace it is to see figures bedecked in camo with snoods pulled up to just under their eyes & headgear down to their eyebrows going about on quads on both estate and public roads. And these guys usually have a semi-auto shotgun in the mount on the front of the quad, of course this is explained away / accepted as normal… necessary even, for…er, “legal predator control” activities. Perhaps some of those guys are the ones stuck in their best shoot-day tweeds growling at the sabs?
Many of the comments here include strongly-worded criticism of Mr Bisset’s statements and standpoint. None, however (except one, arguably) attack him personally. Therefore his claim of…
“nasty personal comments being made against me. Not conducive to sensible debate. This would, I suggest, work against your statement that the violence is all one-sided.”
is simply disingenuous victimhood.
“You will have noted that there are very nasty personal comments being made against me.”
You instigated all of this by calling hunt sabs “terrorists”, likened them to a “death squad”, and made a number of false accusations that they were “setting about people” and that they were acting in a wholly unlawful manner.
Your entire diatribe was pure baseless nonsense, people have called you out on it, and now you’re playing the victim card by claiming that people have posted “very nasty personal comments” against you!
“However, anyone totally dressed in black with a face mask who presents themselves to me will fill me with terror.”
How did you manage to exist during the height of the Covid pandemic? More or less everyone wore masks back then, and some would have been dressed in black. How many times a day did you have to dial 999?
Is it only people that dress in black that terrify you? Do you consider armed police to be terrorists? And what about other colours? Some UK military personnel have been found guilty of unlawful killings in several parts of the world, and they frequently mask up to go about their business, so going by your logic, you must believe that the UK army is a terrorist organisation as well as a death squad.
Another area which hunters like to ignore is that Sabs dress is a tactical choice (unlike hunters, we do think about these things). Having sabs all in black dress allows both parties to identify each other at a distance and avoid this avoid close contact.
I used to be a hunter, for food, not sport, but I have to confess I am on the same side as the sabs when it comes to dealing with the criminal owners on the grouse moors. I know only too well what the keepers get up to. I’ve seen them at work.
exactly the same here,i gave up shooting due to lack of respect of wildlife by other shooters.
Well done Sabs what guts you all have wish there were more like you👍
I am pleased to say I am a member of the Hunt Saboteurs Association and have engaged in sabbing.
Thank you, Frances! I’m also a member but have never sabbed. You are much braver than me.
Same here 👍👏👏
Mr Bisset doesn’t understand almost everything to do with sabs. The tone of his comments are also odd, they very much focus on himself and his opinions, as if his opinions actually matter. If you really want to know how popular sabs are Mr Bisset, you’d only have to watch the responses from the general public when sabs do a street stall.
Mr Bisset is on the wrong side of decency, if we were all like him, nothing would ever change.
Hunt Sabs are some of the bravest, most committed and principled people I’ve ever met. In a human world almost entirely filled with apathy, stupidity, cruelty and greed – they are the exception. They are the ones who put their own bodies on the line, in order to stop animals from being tortured and killed.
Every time I hear/read about sabs saving the lives of foxes or birds (by stopping a shoot) I cheer – and a little bit of my little faith in humanity is restored.
THANK YOU to all the sabs, monitors and activists – for making our countryside better.
Thank you, Dr Tingay for running this website! It would be great to have a ‘like’ or upvote button for the comments – as many are spot on and deserve agreement and some are (to put it mildly) utterly deranged.
I don’t call them Sabs to me they are courageous individuals who make a great team in this fight against animal cruelty, in fact I have donated so they can buy more balaclava’s.